Borealia (Future of The World)
Today, the earth is firmly divided into six geological continents, and seven political ones. But from 75 MyF onwards, there are only three proper continents. The continents of Eurasia, Australia, Africa and North America have all collided to form the continent of Borealia, the precursor to Novopangaea, and the first proper supercontinent to form since the breakup of Gondwana in the late Mesozoic. Borealia is mostly in the Northern Hemisphere, with the North Pole centered over what is today central North America. Africa and Australia are tropical in climate, with warm and humid rainforest covering much of Africa, and some of Australia and southern Eurasia. The rest of Borealia is temperate in climate, with seasonal ice in the northernmost latitudes. The fauna of Borealia, like most continents in the Basilozoic, is largely reptilian dominated, with a wide variety of herbivorous and carnivorous squamates, some large crocodilians, and even some large tortoises being common inhabitants of the continent. Central Eurasian Steppe Eurasia and Africa collided in the late Cenozoic, forming a colossal mountain range. A similar collision between Australia and the islands of Sundaland, and the pre-Holocene formation of the Himalayas, completely closed the last remnants of the ancient Tethys Ocean about 37 MyF. These mountains form a significant rain block, and central Eurasia is now a vast inhospitable steppe. Mammals have long surrendered their place as the rulers of the earth, though they are still found here in large numbers. Instead, the most obvious inhabitants of this cold desert are giant lizards. Reptiles *'Common scutosquama', Scutosquama armata – The common scutosquama is a large Scutosaurus-like herbivorous lizard, a long distant descendant of modern Uromastyx lizards, and a distant relative of the coexisting porcupine lizard. The common scutosquama is the most common of a diverse and long-lived family, the Scutosquamidae. Common scutosquamas are large animals, with some weighing over a ton and measuring some 5 meters long. Despite this, the species is the main prey of most of the predators that coexist with them, and have developed a sort of armor plating on their back, and the spines on their tail have lengthened slightly. The common scutosquama appears to be the ancestor of the coexisting goliath scutosquama, suggesting that the group may be evolving to larger sizes, possibly to outpace their predators. *'Goliath scutosquama', Scutosquama gigantea – This larger relative of the common scutosquama is quite similar to its ancestor, but to support its great weight, it has developed more pillar-like legs. The largest of these behemoths can be over four tons in weight, and be almost ten meters long. Like their smaller relative, they are convergent on Scutosaurus, though to a somewhat lesser degree. Goliath scutosquamas are able to retain heat throughout the night, meaning they are somewhat rudimentary gigantotherms. *'Porcupine lizard', Hystricosaurus vulgaris – This lizard is descended from the spiny tailed Uromastyx lizards of modern day India. Their form is similar to their ancestors, but their spiny tails have developed into quills that make the lizard species quite unfavorable prey. They also, like most larger lizards of this time, have longer and more erect legs than their modern relatives. These animals likely represent what early scutosquamids loked like. *'Steppe saberdrake', Theriosaurus virosus – This monster is another descendant of monitors, but this species is a predator. Saberdrakes, or theriosaurids, are the apex predators of most parts of Borealia, only rivaled by Maurosodontids for supremacy. The steppe saberdrake is the largest species of saberdrake, being up to 8 meters long and weighing almost half a ton. Unlike most reptiles, Theriosaurids have a heterodont dentition, with the killing weapon being a pair of caniform teeth on both jaws that can measure up to 15 cm long. The lower teeth connect to a venom gland in their lower jaw, though most species have lost the need for venom due to their size. Most large saberdrakes can retain heat part of the way through the night, but still have a polikothermic metabolism which renders them as mostly diurnal hunters. *'Eurasian wyrm', Megasophis ingens - '' The largest predator of the Eurasian Steppes. Smaller than its African relative, it can grow up to 10 meters (33 feet) long and weigh up to 272.1 kgs(600 ibs), but can be just as aggressive. It is well designed for taking down large prey, with a crushing force of 380 pounds psi, it can strangle its victims before consuming them. However, it also has a different alternative; it has knife-like teeth for shearing off flesh. If the prey is too large to kill, it can simply tear off pieces of flesh from the victim, simply "snacking" on the sheared flesh, also leaving the prey to provide food at a later date. This design is also effective in hunting smaller prey; after striking, the wyrm follows the prey until it collapses from blood loss, in which it consumes. Like most of its relatives, there is clear sexual dimorphism, with females being larger and having a light grey color, while males have a light brown coloration. Eurasian wyrms live in mated pairs for life, an unusual trait for Maurosodontids, whom both help to defend the nest. Like all Maurosodontids, they are endothermic, meaning that they can retain their heat throughout the cold nights, giving them an advantage over other predators. *'Ambulodraco,' ''Ambulodraco wyvernoides – Ambulodraco is a genus of derived bipedal gubernatotoid found throughout the Old World, one of the only completely bipedal squamates to exist. Ambulodraco are quite large, up to 6 meters long with a 5 meter wingspan, large enough to compete with saberdrakes, though their lighter build means they generally eat smaller prey. Unlike the mostly nonvenomous giant saberdrakes, ambulodracos have venom, and they can spit this venom with high accuracy up to three meters away. If it gets in a prey items eyes it will cause near instant blindness which lasts for several hours, more than enough time for the predator to finish off its prey. Ambulodracos are poor fliers among gubernators, and only fly when hard pressed by predation by ground-dwelling competitors. Ironically, flying from ground based enemies puts the relatively small ambulodraco at risk of attack by their much larger and more volant relatives. *'Great gubernator', Gorgonopteryx pernimius – This giant flying squamate is the largest flying land based species of gubernator, with a maximum wingspan of 11 metres, rivalling even the mightiest of pterosaurs. While lacking talons on their feet, great gubernators have a large claw on their hand, and have a huge head with powerful teeth and jaws, able to tackle anything smaller than they are. Most prey consists of herbivores like scutosquamas, but given the chance, they will hunt other predators. Ambulodraco in particular are likely to fall victim to these aerial tyrants, as the flying defence employed by young ambulodraco is ineffective. Amphibians *'Rock Toad', Geobufo terrestrius -- This strange amphibian has tough leathery skin to hold in moisture, and spends much of its time in a torpor-like hibernation. When full of water, this animal can weigh up to a whopping 5 kg. Mammals *'Coyotoid', Serocyon classis – The largest living Borealian mammal is the Mongolian coyotoid, a distant descendant of modern mustelids, and an important nocturnal predator, taking over from saber drakes and wyrms in the chilling night time of the desert. Coyotoids are able to hunt prey larger than themselves by hunting in packs, and by using the fearlessness inherited from their ancestors, even the normally formidable saberdrakes can fall victim to a pack of coyotoids at night. The modern honey badger has the closest thing in terms of body plan to the coyotoid. Despite this nocturnal dominance, coyotoids are steadily being forced north by rising temperatures, with the continent of North America, now centered over the North Pole, and the high altitude Mediterranean/Indo-Australian mountains being the mammalian stronghold of Borealia. Still, the mammalian diversity of Borealia is trivial compared to south america, which mammals have retained their dominance on. *'Raateh', Endurattus vulgaris – The raateh is the common name of a successful genus of derived muroid rodent, widely distributed throughout northern Borealia. This species is notable for its lack of a tail, but is otherwise very similar to its relatives elsewhere, and to modern Holocene muroids. Birds *'Horror birds', family Tromouidae – This family of hawk-like birds are distant descendants of shrikes. They get their name due to how they catch their prey. They catch smaller prey by snatching them with their talons and swallowing them whole like a modern-day bird of prey, while they hunt larger prey by impaling them on any available sharp point, similar to it's ancestors. There are dozens of species of horror birds found all over Borealia. Smaller animals that horror birds hunt includes raatehs, other small mammals, reptiles and fish; while larger prey consists of mostly smaller scutosquamas. North African Woodlands North Africa today is a desert, but this is only a recent event; as recently as 5000 years ago it was savanna, and will likely be in the not so distant future. Now, 50 million years in the future, it has ultimately returned to this state. Unlike the Holocene savannas, there are no lions, elephants, hyenas or hoofed mammals. Instead, as with Eurasia, much of the fauna is largely reptile based. The herbivores are still largely composed of the adaptable Scutosquamas, but other herbivores also call this place home, including the numerous Sprinters, small, deer-like grazers found throughout the plains, and not all are reptiles. Hunting them are two of the largest land predators since the age of the dinosaurs. Reptiles *'African scutosquama', Scutosquama africana – The African scutosquama is a large herbivore found throughout Africa, but most commonly around the base of the Mediterranean mountains. Their form, like most scutosquamas, is similar to that of Scutosaurus. One distinguishing feature is the heavy armour they possess on their tail, using it to swing at predators. *'Ridgehead sprinter, 'Hippussaura leekorum - ''The Ridgehead sprinter is a bulkier distant relative of the Common sprinter, being built more like a large horse than an antelope. But it's most distinguishable feature is its boomerang-shaped head, often used for display. The Ridgehead has a similar shape on the end of it's short, bulky tail, almost creating the illusion of a head on each end. The Ridgehead uses this adaptation to it's advantage: when one spots a predator, they run in all directions, confusing the pursuer, as it is trying to tell which direction it will escape to. *'Common sprinter,' ''Elaphossaura targeri - ''This is the most numerous reptile on the African plains. They are much smaller than the Scutosquama giants they share the plains with, growing up to 1.8 meters (6 feet) long, and weighing in at 90 kgs (200 ibs). However, despite their small size, they are fast and adaptable, being able to run at speeds of 70 mph, and can easily outrun slower predators. They also waste very little water, an adaptation built for surviving long periods of drought, meaning Sprinters can live in harsher climates than other herbivores, like scrublands of desert. They are very social creatures, living in herds of up to 50 members, led by an alpha male and female pair. All members share a part in the herd; other males work as sentries and guards, warning the herd of danger, while females watch over the hatchlings, acting as nannies while the mother is out grazing. Males and females are very different in build; male have large horns used for display, fighting or defense, while females have small horns that have relatively no use. *'Greater zilla', ''Godzillasaurus gigas – This predator is a theriosaur, like the saberdrakes, but they are bipedal. Of the over 8 species of godzillasaurs are known, this species is the largest, and can be over 10 metres long, and three metres high. Despite being bipedal, godzillasaurs have shorter hind legs than theropods, and stand more upright, with their tail dragging on the ground slightly. In order to be more active, they have a better heat retention system, they are functionally endothermic, but also two sails on their back, and another on their tail. The sails have the appearance of plates, hence the name for the animals. Despite this, not all godzillasaurs possess sails, and some are small forest predators. *'Titan wyrm', Megasophis atrox - The titan wyrm is the largest member of the Maurosodontidae family, and the largest snake ever to live. This species can grow up to 15.2 meters (50 feet) long and weigh in at 589.6 kilograms (1,300 pounds), making it an apex predator. Because of its size, it is much slower than its smaller relatives are, but also much more powerful. Titan wyrms feed on weak, sick, old, or injured animals, in which they strangle with a crushing force of 790 lbs psi. Like other closely-related species, the titan wyrm can dismember prey, which differs from modern snakes swallowing their prey whole. Males and females differ in both physical and behavioral ways; males have red, more prominent lacrimal bones above their eye orbits, while females have smaller lacrimal bones that lack the red hue, and are rather black. Females are also more ferocious hunters, while males often scavenge the kills of other predators. Mammals *'African raateh', Endurattus africanus – A relative of the raateh, this animal has a longer tail and bigger hind feet, and is more adapted to hopping, similar to a jerboa. North American Forest Seventy million years from now, much of western North America has become wet temperate forest, butressed against the growing mountains behind it. Powerful winds from the closing Pacific Ocean fuel the forest every day. Here strange creatures roam around this forest swinging along the trees, or crawling along the forest floor. This environment is very similar to the forest of the American northwest but warmer than most forests in North America. Here, the fauna, like the rest of Borealia, is dominated by reptiles. The smaller cousins to the gubernators swing along the tree tops instead of flying, while saberdrakes hunt on the forest floor catching anything in sight. Reptiles *'Tree gubernator', Varanornisaurus micros – The smallest member of the Gubernatoroidea. It's the size of a pet cat. Unlike its cousins they are adapted for the swinging and gliding across the forest canopy, and are poor fliers. They are the most common predator in the forest. Like all gubernatoroidea, this animal has venom, and following the 'rule' that smaller genera have stronger venom, this creature has very strong venom, and is actually an apex arboreal predator. Still, this animal avoids adult tree snappers. *'Kamilothere', Pardalisaurus americanus - A massive herbivore of the forests. It is the largest herbivore in Borealia, and on Earth, growing up to 9 meters (29 feet) tall, 22 meters (72 feet) long, and weighing up to 30 tons (27,215 kgs). There size not only protects them from predators, but also grants them the privilege of being able to browse the tallest leaves undisturbed. However, such a large creature would also need a large amount of food, and lots of space. To cope with this, they've lost the social behavior of their smaller relatives, being social during breeding or a mother with her calf. A female usually lays a singular egg, though sometimes up to three, and stays with her offspring for 3 years, the longest commitment of any reptile. Because they are safe from most predators, the greatest danger to a Kamilothere is another Kamilothere; they are highly territorial, and will defend their land aggressively, often by slamming their bodies into each other, doing so until one gives up. These long battles can shake the ground with the stomping of their feet, and can trample over areas of forest flat, creating a wider territory for them to control. *'Forest saberdrake', '' Theriosaurus sylvestris'' – This species of saberdrake is 'smaller' than its Eurasian cousin. What's most unique about this creature is its large claws, which can be up to 10 cm long and are used for hunting, and sometimes fo clear vegetation from their path, but mostly for show. They also have dark green skin so they can blend in with the forest suroundings. They are more reliant on stealth than most saberdrakes since they weigh only 140 kg. *'Crowned striker', Agkistrodon progenos - A highly venomous snake that lurks in the forest canopy. It paralyzes its victims and devours them alive, and is capable of consuming creatures much larger than they are. Males have horns over their eye orbits that are used as a display for females in the mating season. Female strikers lay up to 30 eggs at a time, and fiercely guard them until they hatch, after which she abandons the nest. They eat anything they can catch, including birds, fish, lizards, mammals, and even saberdrakes (usually weak, sick, old, injured, or young). This species is endothermic, or "warm-blooded", like other species of snakes at the time. But what sets it apart from other snakes is that it has more than one pair of fangs (five, to be specific.), meaning it can inject more venom with a single bite. This species is the most primitive member of the Maurosodontidae. *'River striker', Telmatophis fragilialis - ''The River striker is a species of snake that, like the more primitive Crowned striker, makes its home in the forest of North America, particularly in close proximity of water such as rivers, hence their name. These snakes can grow up to 5 meters (16 ft 5 in), making them the largest predators found in the rivers of the North American Forests, meaning that they have very little competition in their aquatic habitat. Compared to their terrestrial relatives, River strikers are much better adapted for life in water than on land; they have paddle-like tails for steering through the currents, as well as a more streamlined appearance for less drag. They have even developed something that very few, if any, reptiles have developed before; electroreception. Like sharks, these aquatic snakes have extremely sensitive electroreceptors in their faces that are used to detect potential prey moving about in the water, so that they can close in on them and subdue them with paralyzing toxins, leaving the prey easier to consume. Despite their supremacy in the water, they are vulnerable on land to larger predators, such as Saberdrakes and Venatorexes. To combat this, not only are they viviparous, so that females don't have to journey to land to lay eggs, but they are social reptiles, living in groups go up to 20 strong. This ensures that they are protected from larger carnivores, as well as having an easier time hunting for prey. *'Boreal tree snapper', ''Arboreptans polaris - Tree snappers are a group of tree adapted theriosaurs found all over Borealia, and most species are rather small, about the size of a cat. The Boreal tree snapper of North America is the largest species, being up to 4 metres long, and able to look a person in the eye when standing. Most tree snappers look somewhat like chameleons, but with longer necks and tails, but the boreal tree snapper, and it's Eurasian relative the mountain snapper, both look more similar to old featherless restorations of theropod dinosaurs. Tree snappers have flexible limbs, and relatively long necks, and a long, but not prehensile, tail used for balance. Because of their habitat being relatively close to the North Pole, which is dark for most of the year, Boreal tree snappers have large forward oriented eyes, which somewhat resemble those of modern owls. *'Venatorex', Theriosaurus venator - ''The apex predator of the forest ecosystem. Though they don't grow as large as their African relatives, they still stand above most other Theriosaurs, at 7.3 meters (24 feet) long and 2.4 meters (8 feet) tall, making it the largest carnivorous animal in its habitat. Their size makes them the only predator capable of injuring a Kamilothere, although this is extremely difficult for a single Venatorex, meaning that hunting in groups is much more effective. They often hunt in groups of 3 or 4 individuals, and usually go for young or weak Kamilotheres. They attack the flanks of their prey, shearing off pieces of flesh from their body until they collapse from blood loss. Although their diet mainly consists of Kamilotheres, they will feed on smaller animals if there is a shortage, such as Saberdrakes or Tree Snappers. Amphibians Birds Mammals *'Forest shrew''' – A shrew-like mammal about the size of a house cat. It roams around the forest floor. It spends most of its time searching for eggs during the night time. Candidates Please put creature ideas here if you are not part of the team (Cryptile, Marcello, KaptainWombat).